Boats and Bikes

Yesterday was a very memorable day for me.

The office where I work had our annual team building excursion.  Normally, every year when this time approaches I feel an odd combination of both excitement and reluctance.  I am excited because it is a break in the ordinary, something different to pull you out of the mundane office life, but the reluctance is there too because it often disappoints as a "team building" experience, and I always came home feeling like we totally missed the point.

But this year, was different.  This year was AWESOME.  The activity planned was just amazing, and for the first time ever each member of our office was totally into it.  I was looking forward to this trip for days in advance, I couldn't wait.  I felt like I used to in elementary school when our grade 4 class had a day long field trip planned to the aquarium or science world.   

This year we went on a sea scape outdoor adventure.  We divided our 10 person office into two teams of 5, each group piling into a little 6 person boat before taking off to ocean waters in pursuit of the items and questions on our scavenger hunt.  We spent 3 hours racing around on the wide open waters, buzzing over giant waves left behind monstrous passenger ferries and hard working tug boats. We discovered tiny islands, and hidden coves. We bobbed along with lazy seagulls and laughed at curious seals that popped their heads up at the sound of us approaching.  We each took turns driving the boat, some of us more cautious then others, and worked together to find all the answers on our crinkled and salt stained sheets of paper.  When we all got back to the marina we shared stories over ice cold drinks and fresh crunchy french fries. It was team building at its best.

But the part that struck me most was just how gorgeous this part of the world is.  Too often I take for granted the raw beauty of the environment around me, but today as I was zipping around in our little boat I just couldn't imagine any place in the world more spectacular than this. The west coast of Canada is wild and magical, inspiring and rich with life, but most of all it is home.  My home. My family's home. And I love it.



Moving on... tonight my bike finally made it home from the fix-it shop with brand new tires, tuned up chains and gears and a shiny new child's bike seat affixed securely behind my own. We could barely inhale our dinners fast enough before strapping on our helmets and mounting our bikes for an early evening family ride along the beach to watch the sun as she made her dissent for the day.

Jake loved it.  He took to his new monster helmet like he'd been wearing it all his life.  And as I peddled along the sun heated asphalt with his daddy hot on our tail he cheered us on shouting "Go! Go! Go!"

Our first family bike adventure was officially a success, and I am already looking forward to our next trip out.